MYSTERY QUESTIONS &
MEMORIESOh, what great mysteries await us. Here are
some for you to solve -- get involved!

No. 1: Where andWhendid
Alexander BRYAN (First generation) die?No. 2: Who were
Alexander's parents? Does he descend from THE Alexander
Bryan of Milford, CT. or did he descend from an obscure
BRYAN family, yet to be discovered?No. 3: Where is
Samantha HUDSON Bryan buried?

No. 5: Whywas
Gordon James Bryan born in Britton, SD? (Why were his
parents there?)

Send in your questions. Or better
yet -- send in your answers. If we all work on this, we
can find the answers!
MEMORIES FROM THE BRYAN DESCENDANTS

I was only 12 years old when
Grandma Celeste died in 1960, but I remember her well.
She spent a lof of time at our house visiting. One time
my brother Stuart & I left the house on a cold winter
day and walked to a friend's house to play. We were
always told to stay away from the pond that was in our
neighborhood; but since it was so cold, we decided to
take the shortcut and cross the pond. In a matter of
minutes, both Stuart and I fell in. We were in a
dangerous situation with heavy winter coats and leggings
and the water was up to our necks. Luckily, a 16 year old
boy who lived by the pond heard our cries for help and
rescued us, by pulling us out one at a time. He carried
me, as Stuart and he walked/ran us home. Grandma Celeste
was visiting that day. When my mother saw us, she was so
mad (yet thankful we were alive) and swatted both of us
about the head. Grandma Celeste intervened and said,
"Oh My, you must never strike a child, especially
around the head." I remember Grandma talking to us
in a very soothing way as she helped to get us out of the
wet clothing and into dry clothes. I also remember that
she used to fold her arms and rock back and forth all the
time, not knowing she was doing this -- I think it was
because she had so many children and it was just a normal
thing for her to do. She was a very kind, warm, loving
mother and grandmother. The world would be a better place
if she were still in it. Kathy Bryan

ps- I almost forgot - WHO could forget SNOOZER? The ever-faithful
canine companion of the George J. Bryan family. Snoozer
always barked at the paper boy and one night Gloria Bryan
had a dream that Snoozer jumped on Michael's bike and
chased after the paper boy, barking at him as he peddled
down the driveway. Really! Gloria, those dreams of yours!

From Robert (Bob) Bryan - My Grandpa and Grandma were
known as "Maggie" and "Will". They
lived with us for a couple of years when we lived in
Brooklyn Center on 63rd and June Avenue N. We had no
electricity at the time, so naturally no indoor plumbing
or running water. I think it was a "heavy" load
that my parents had to carry in taking care of Will and
Maggie, since there were still kids at home and with the
laundry and bathroom facilities as they were, it was just
too much on my parents. Grandma Maggie Bryan had been
crippled ever since I could remember and was not able to
get around much without the aid of a cane. She was pretty
much bound to her rocking chair. It was placed where she
could look out a huge window into the back yard; which
was like looking at nothing, since we lived at the end of
a dirt road and people seldom ventured down that far.
Grandpa Will Bryan was short, a little hunched over, but
a rather spry old gentleman, who at 87 years of age
walked 3 miles into town nearly every day. Destination:
44th and Newton Avenue N. He almost always picked up
candy for the small children, then walked the 3 miles
back again. I'm also quite sure that trip was made to
pick up his Copenhagen snuff. He was seldom caught
without a pinch of that in his lower lip. He had the
traditional coffee can right by "his" rocking
chair (to dispose of the snoose) and once in a while he
would even hit the mark. At the age of 89, quite rapidly,
Grandpa Will became very senile, which made it impossible
for him to stay with us any longer. He was put in a
nursing home, where he eventually fell down a flight of
stairs, lapsed into a coma for 4 days and never came out
of it. He would have been 90 years old in 2 more days.
Prior to moving in with us, they lived just of Broadway
in North Mpls. I would make it a point to visit them at
least every other week. A story passed down from "my"
father is that Grandpa Will was into cockfighting when
they lived in Michigan. Dad told me that when he was a
young boy, he watched grandpa sharpen the spurs on a
rooster once. When he finished sharpening them, he just
gave the rooster a toss into the air and it shot right
back at him and sunk its spurs into grandpa's arm. I
don't know if the rooster survived.(From Gloria Bryan) - In the early
1950's, Grandma Florence Gilbert ( a widow) would take
the street car from her home in the Plymouth Avenue
neighborhood, North Minneapolis to Penn and Broadway for
a weekly visit to our house. She would spend the entire
day, reading stories and entertaining her great-grandchildren.
At the end of a long day and after dinner, we would drive
her home in the evening. It was during these visits that
she taught me many lullabyes and poems that she had
memorized and would often recite to the children. She was
a very busy, active lady and often took care of her
grandson, Jimmy Montgomery. We found it humerous that
many times she would recount her weekly activities to us,
and they always included visits up and down Broadway
Avenue to stop in at all the local mortuaries to see who
had died. I remember her as a very sedate, prim and
proper lady, who was also very kind.

(From Gloria Bryan) - In the early
1950's we also took several week-end fishing expeditions
with Grandma Celeste, Grandpa George and Michael to the
North Shore. I remember Celeste and I picking blueberries
during these trips, while the men were out fishing.
Celeste really enjoyed watching t.v. when it first came
out and spent a lot of time cooking -- and a wonderful
cook she was!. She was a very loving mother, a fantastic
mother-in-law and left us too soon. My memories of her
are very warm.